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Twenty-Two
Reasons For Paved Highway Shoulders

Since the 1971 "Bike Bill" was passed, and the terms "shoulder
bikeways" or "bike lanes" were commonly used, the Oregon Highway Department
advocated building paved shoulders when reconstructing roads. There was also an aggressive
program in the 60's and 70's to add paved shoulders to existing roads. These were often
referred to as "safety shoulders." There are good reasons for this term.

The following are some of the reasons why standard width shoulders are advantageous.
Most are paraphrases of what AASHTO has to say about shoulders. Paved shoulders have
benefits in three important areas: safety, capacity and maintenance. Most of these
advantages apply to both shoulders on rural highways and to marked, on-street bike lanes
on urban roadways.